Portland Artist Returns to Northbrook Roots with YMCA Community Gallery Show

Portland Artist Returns to Northbrook Roots with YMCA Community Gallery Show

Posted By Creative Marketing, Community Contributor

Dreamlike scenes of animals and nature epitomize the artwork of Northbrook native Jesse Narens, currently on display at the North Suburban YMCA’s Community Gallery.

Dreamlike scenes of animals and nature epitomize the artwork of Northbrook native Jesse Narens, currently on display at the North Suburban YMCA’s Community Gallery. (Posted By Creative Marketing, Community Contributor)

Artist Jesse Narens brings the free-spirited individuality of Portland to his hometown of Northbrook in a new exhibit of drawings at the North Suburban YMCA. The Glenbrook North High School graduate is the featured artist for July in the Y’s Community Gallery, a showcase for monthly exhibits of local artwork.

Narens specializes in evocative images of animals, plants, and other natural elements, inspired by the setting of his new home in Oregon. His work has been featured in a number of galleries, music venues and other locales in Chicago, Portland, San Francisco, and Seattle. In an artist’s statement, he expresses his personal wish “to experience beauty, encounter randomness, and chaos (change) with open arms and become more connected with nature and the collective universe…. The concepts in each finished piece are not preconceived, but rather manifestations of thoughts from within.”

The collection of Narens’s pen-and-ink drawings will be on display through the end of July at the YMCA, 2705 Techny Road in Northbrook. The artwork is available for purchase, with a portion of the proceeds going to support the Y’s visual arts programs for youth in the community. For more information about Jesse Narens, visit www.jessenarens.com.

About the North Suburban YMCA The North Suburban YMCA is a not-for-profit entity and relies on donations to fund capital improvements and transform the facility. All board members are community volunteers, who donate their time, talents and financial resources. Located at 2705 Techny Road in Northbrook, the YMCA has served area families in its twelve-city region for over 40 years. The Y is about youth development, healthy living, and social responsibility, providing programs and services that meet the needs of our community and are accessible to all. For more information or to make a donation, call Barb Flanagin at 847-272-7250, bflanagin@nsymca.org, or visit www.nsymca.org.